Modeling the Proton-Irradiation Impact on the Characteristics of Hybrid (MAPbI₃) and Inorganic (CsPbI₃) Perovskite Solar Cells

A comprehensive modeling approach has been developed to analyze the impact of proton irradiation (with different beam energy and irradiation fluence levels) on the device characteristics of two different hybrid (MAPbI₃) and inorganic (CsPbI₃) perovskite solar cell. Proton irradiation induces lattice defects (vacancies) that modify the key performance parameters, such as carrier mobility, lifetime, and shunt and series resistance, thereby increasing recombination losses and diminishing open-circuit voltage and current density and quantum efficiency. Two perovskite solar cells based on MAPbI₃ and CsPbI₃ were modeled under proton exposure at 500 keV, 1.5 MeV, and 3 MeV, across fluence ranging from 10¹¹ p/cm² to 10¹⁵ p/cm². Simulation results show that defect density increases from ~10¹⁴ cm⁻³ to 10¹⁷ cm⁻³ with increased fluence and significantly deteriorates the carrier lifetime. Consequently, MAPbI₃ experiences severe performance losses (power conversion efficiency [PCE]: 17–6%), while CsPbI₃ maintains higher resilience (PCE: 18–10%) under the same conditions. The normalized damage function, D_d(x), decays more rapidly in MAPbI₃—within 50 nm—whereas in CsPbI₃ it extends beyond 150 nm, confirming stronger lattice stability and reduced non-ionizing energy loss. This modeling quantitatively demonstrates that the all-inorganic CsPbI₃ perovskite retains over 60% of its initial photovoltaic efficiency under high-energy, high-fluence irradiation, thus providing superior structural stability and radiation tolerance compared to hybrid MAPbI₃ counterparts for space applications.